Undergraduate Course Catalog 2011-2012

The Department of English offers foundation courses in writing as part of the General Education curriculum, as well as courses designed for students interested in further developing writing skills and an understanding of and appreciation for literature. The department also offers coursework for the English major and minor interested in an extensive study of language, literature and writing.

THE UNIVERSITY'S GENERAL EDUCATION WRITING PROGRAM

The University’s General Education Writing Program at Lewis University is designed to prepare students to develop the critical skills necessary to create effective prose used in both college-level coursework and professional life. The subject of the program’s writing courses (College Writing I, College Writing II, and Advanced Writing) is composition; by examining the writing process and the choices that writers make as they move from pre-writing and drafting through revision and editing, students develop an understanding of the many uses of writing as a means of communication, but also as a form of thinking and knowing, especially about the self.

Through the examination of the works of professional writers, students will be asked to read critically, to analyze and synthesize information, and to present their findings in a manner that is consistent with current standards of usage and documentation. Students will also be asked to generate a variety of rhetorical modes, allowing them to consider certain forms and styles. Further, they will be asked to consider issues of audience, purpose, tone and diction. One important goal of the composition program is for students to begin to understand the choices they make as writers and to develop a self-awareness of their own strengths and needs as writers. In addition, the courses develop “evidenced reasoning” by insisting that students support their own opinions through the use of secondary sources appropriate to disciplinary practice. Another goal of the program is for students to develop skills in using electronic tools: word processing, e-mail, and the Internet. Courses employ research skills, from both traditional and electronic sources. Courses also examine catalogs, periodical indexes, databases and other bibliographic tools commonly used in college-level writing.

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ENGLISH MAJOR

An English major has a choice of three programs:

PROGRAM ONE: ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS FOR TEACHERS. This program is designed primarily for the student who intends to teach English at the secondary level. The program is approved by the Illinois State Teacher Certification Board in conjunction with the Illinois State Board of Education and leads to the Initial Secondary (6-12) Certificate. Students in Program One must major in English and declare a minor in Education. These majors must consult with both English and School of Education advisors before registering for courses.

PROGRAM TWO: LITERATURE AND LANGUAGE. This program is designed primarily for the student who wants to develop an individualized program of study in language and literature and/or is preparing for further graduate studies in English or related disciplines requiring analytical skills, such as law, management, administration and research in humanities.

PROGRAM THREE: WRITING. This program focuses on writing and emphasizes three dimensions of writing as a profession and discipline: the creative, the professional, and the theoretical. Students complete the core curriculum and then, depending on particular interests and talents, choose to specialize in Creative Writing, Professional Writing, or pursue a more general course of study in Writing. Students may not minor in both Professional and Creative Writing.